Looking for new Eyepiece advice

[Scubaguyron]

Hello all!

I need some advice here please. I'm a beginner and have a Celestron Powerseeker 114eq. This is now my second scope. My first was a cheap 70mm refractor. I'd like to upgrade my eyepieces for the Celestron 20mm and 4mm that came with the scope. I'm aware that my new Celestron is a Newtonian and therefore provides an image that is upside down and backwards. The lenses that came with the scope correct this. The old ones from the refractor show the true image from the Newtonian.

I've been told to look into the Plossl eyepieces. Do they correct the image? Should I not want the image corrected? How do I tell if they do or don't while shopping? Do you have other suggestions? I was thinking about a 20mm and 10mm eyepiece. I'd like them to be able to accept filters. If 20mm and 10mm aren't a good Idea, Please advise.

Should I also change out the Barlow? I've used it with the 20mm viewing the moon and it seems alright.

I'd also appreciate some filter suggestions for light pollution, the moon, planets and possibly nebula(primarily orion).

Sorry about so many questions. I just want to make the correct decisions and google hasn't been much help.

Thanks in advance for the help.

[Refractordude]

Hello Scubaguyron:

It will help if forum members know your max budget.

[Scubaguyron]

I’d probably prefer to stay under $200.00 or thereabouts.

[russmax]

Hi, Ron.
These are good questions.
So, all telescopes invert the image--refractors, reflectors, catadioptrics. This is because the eyepiece collects the image after the focal point. Mirror diagonals uninvert on one axis, but not the other. Newtonians don't use diagonals, so you're inverted (just like Maverick in Top Gun)

Some diagonals have an Amici prism inside, which uninverts fully. A lot of smaller refractors come with that type of prism, because they also get used for daytime/nature viewing. Astronomers tend to value brightness and image clarity over non-inverted images, so the best diagonals and eyepieces don't correct the image. (A correct image can be very useful in your finderscope, however.)

I believe only your 20mm eyepiece corrects your image, but your 4mm does not. When you are shopping for eyepieces, I do not think you will find any that correct the image. The will all accept filters in the barrel.

Plossls are ok for long focal lengths, but harder for short. Just like your 4mm is probably pretty hard to look into. Rather than make specific suggestions on EPs, I will link to another recent topic that covered all of this thoroughly.
viewtopic.php?f=4&t=6039

In summary, you have a lot of EP choices, and keep your Barlow (but eventually have enough EPs that you don't use it). For filters, a neutral density moon filter and a light pollution filter should be all you need.

Best regards,
Russmax

[russmax]

I said I wouldn’t, but I thought about it. For $200 you could get a 32 mm GSO plossl, and a couple of Agena Astro Dual Ed eyepieces (18 an 12 mm) and still have money for this moon and light pollution filter kit. https://agenaastro.com/celestron-moon-f ... 94315.html

[Wingsfan81]

I’d recommend the X Cel LX eyepieces. The 25mm would be good for low power, you could add in the 12mm for your mid range and the 7mm for higher power. With three eyepieces you can be pretty close to your budget and cover basically every viewing option with that scope. I’d recommend ordering these on Amazon rather than from the Celestron website, for some reason they are priced noticeably lower on Amazon.

[pakarinen]

Something you might want to consider is eye relief, essentially how far back can you keep your eye when viewing. I find short eye relief EPs ( less than 10mm) to be very uncomfortable to use, but you might not.

One excellent resource is the eyepiece guide that's posted over on cloudynights.com. It's a large Excel sheet that you can plug in a few parmaeters like scope focal length and all sorts of specs (and prices) pop out. Not sure if the prices are 100% accurate because of sales and such, but there's a boatload of info there.

Happy hunting!

Edit: Here ya go:

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/6575 ... ers-guide/

[Scubaguyron]

Something you might want to consider is eye relief, essentially how far back can you keep your eye when viewing. I find short eye relief EPs ( less than 10mm) to be very uncomfortable to use, but you might not.

One excellent resource is the eyepiece guide that's posted over on cloudynights.com. It's a large Excel sheet that you can plug in a few parmaeters like scope focal length and all sorts of specs (and prices) pop out. Not sure if the prices are 100% accurate because of sales and such, but there's a boatload of info there.

Happy hunting!

Edit: Here ya go:

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/6575 ... ers-guide/

The spread sheet doesn't allow me to add anything.

[russmax]

An easy way to add new lines to the spreadsheet:
1. Select the last line (1153) and below that as many new lines as you want to add.
2. Type CTRL-D (fill down) to duplicate line 1153 for as many lines as you selected.
3. Replace the cell entries of the new lines with your new eyepiece info.

[Lady Fraktor]

Hello Ron, Plossl eyepieces will work well with your telescope and the GSO Plossl are a very good place to look as they are quite good quality for the price.
The next step up is more than double the price.
An erecting eyepiece that get included with these is a poor eyepiece and is really only good for terrestrial viewing.
When looking at the sky there is no up or down so after viewing for a bit it will not seem odd to you.
This may give you a few pointers on choosing the best focal length eyepieces for your telescope :viewtopic.php?f=34&t=550

[pakarinen]

Something you might want to consider is eye relief, essentially how far back can you keep your eye when viewing. I find short eye relief EPs ( less than 10mm) to be very uncomfortable to use, but you might not.

One excellent resource is the eyepiece guide that's posted over on cloudynights.com. It's a large Excel sheet that you can plug in a few parmaeters like scope focal length and all sorts of specs (and prices) pop out. Not sure if the prices are 100% accurate because of sales and such, but there's a boatload of info there.

Happy hunting!

Edit: Here ya go:

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/6575 ... ers-guide/

The spread sheet doesn't allow me to add anything.

Hit the "Enable editing" button at the top. Enter the focal length and f-ratio in the cells at the top left.

[LDW47]

I’d probably prefer to stay under $200.00 or thereabouts.

The Agena Astro line of eps, in both sizes, are excellent performers vs their $ value, you would be more than happy with them as a first timer, you can move on from there when or if the time is right ! For $200 or in that range you could probably buy 3-4 depending on their sales at the time and free shipping in the US !

[Sebushka]

Maybe you consider something like this :
Seben 31.7mm 1.25" Zoom 8-24mm FMC Telescope Eyepiece
I am delighted, much better then my stock plossals and I don't have to change eyepieces anymore
Or something more "pro" :
Baader Planetarium 8-24/3.6-10.7 mm Hyperion Universal Zoom Mark IV with Barlow 2.25x - Black
I can imagine it's even better

[Scubaguyron]

UPDATE...

So I purchased GSO Plossl eyepieces in 25mm, 20mm and 12mm as well as the GSO 2x Barlow from Agena Astro. wow what a difference. Had time last night for some viewing . Could clearly see venus at about 60% phase with the 25mm and the 2x barlow added. The Orion Nebula was so bright and clear with the 25mm. Very happy.

[Lady Fraktor]

Good to hear they are working well for you
A decent eyepiece makes a huge difference over the supplied eyepieces.

They will work well in both of your telescopes as well.
You know the trick of taking the lens cell off of the barlow and screwing it onto the bottom of the eyepiece?
This gives you 1.5x magnification so with your 25mm you would have 25, 17, 12.5mm focal lengths.

[Baurice]

Good to hear they are working well for you
A decent eyepiece makes a huge difference over the supplied eyepieces.

They will work well in both of your telescopes as well.
You know the trick of taking the lens cell off of the barlow and screwing it onto the bottom of the eyepiece?
This gives you 1.5x magnification so with your 25mm you would have 25, 17, 12.5mm focal lengths.

Yes, I agree. I would be a bit cautious about over-spending on eyepieces:

1. High-medium quality eyepieces can get the most out of a telescope but top quality expensive ones won't

2. Many of us end up leaving our eyepieces in the cupboard and attach a camera to our telescopes instead.

[Lady Fraktor]

I would not say they will not as they will but the extra money spent for the last 5% gained is up to the purchaser.
In 30+ years I have yet to find a reason to place a camera anywhere near my telescopes so I will just continue to rotate through my collection of eyepieces

[Baurice]

I would not say they will not as they will but the extra money spent for the last 5% gained is up to the purchaser.
In 30+ years I have yet to find a reason to place a camera anywhere near my telescopes so I will just continue to rotate through my collection of eyepieces

I'm surprised that you haven't been attracted to the dark side of astrophotography. It is quite rare for me to use an eyepiece, as I normally use binoculars for visual use and I have even aimed cameras through them.

I think that an extra 5% of money is OK but some eyepieces are about £500 and I would not use them with a beginner or intermediate 'scope.

[Lady Fraktor]

I think you would be quite surprised at placing a premium eyepiece in a intermediate telescope and some beginners ones.
Most times they are average to above average optically just let down by the packaged items that come with them.
A quality eyepiece and diagonal can open the potential of the optics quite a bit at times.
Seeing just a bit more detail or digging a bit deeper than can be done with a regular eyepiece.
I am not saying everyone should go and spend money on premium okulars but do not pass up the chance if you can borrow one to test it or purchase one at a reasonable discount.

[Ruud]

By its nature a Newtonian turns the view around while a refractor with a diagonal gives a mirror image. Correcting this always leads to a loss of image quality so don't bother. You get used to these little things like upside down or left and right inverted views.

I like my GSO 32mm 52° Plöosl. It's a very nice eyepiece that gives about the same true view as my 34mm 68°:

Both show the largest section of the sky that you can see in a 1.25" focuser.

I take the 32mm Plössl along when I go bird watching. It is nice and lightweight. The 24mm 68° I use in my 6" SCT. It's a bit bulkier and heavy. Both eyepieces work well with my Barlows.

The views in the image above are screenshots from Stellarium. Using its included Oculars plug-in you can enter the specs of your actual and prospective telescopes, barlows and eyepieces. This way you can get an idea how wide a view you will get from any combination. Get Stellarium for free from https://stellarium.org. You'll also find a manual there. Use that to find out how to set up the Oculars plug-in. Stellarium is a beautiful planetarium program that can be a great help in planning observations.

I'd advise a decent 2x Barlow and the 24mm ES 68°. To save money you could get the GSO instead of the ES.